3 things every hotel manager wishes you knew

Aja Frost

Feb 26, 2016

Have you ever looked at your hotel manager and wondered what he or she could possibly be thinking? Well, we’re not mind-readers—but there are definitely thoughts that run through every hotel manager’s mind on a consistent basis. Here's a little insight to what your manager might be thinking since they probably don't have time to tell you themselves.

1. Don’t take criticism personally

As a hotel employee, you’re constantly going to be receiving feedback from guests. And guests will often be angry or frustrated by things outside your control.

Maybe you’re a front-desk concierge, but they blame you for the towel shortage in the gym. Or, even though your sole function is to help plan events at the hotel, visitors complain to you about the room accommodations.

Taking these complaints personally is easy—even if you’re outwardly calm—but your manager will value you more highly if you’re able to stay completely unaffected. After all, you’ll be better able to help a guest if you’re not seething on the inside.

Even though your manager can tell you, “Don’t take criticism personally,” over and over again, it won’t be effective unless you internalize it. Guests just need someone to vent to (and you can vent to your co-workers later).

2. Better to do something than nothing

Your hotel manager has a ton of responsibilities to juggle and people to oversee, which means he or she wants you to be as autonomous as possible. After all, the longer you wait on issues in the hospitality world, the more they escalate.

If you’re faced with an unexpected issue—whether it’s big or small—don’t just wait around for your boss to tell you what to do. Using your previous experience and how you’ve seen others successfully handle similar situations, take some sort of action.

Of course, you should never hide information from your boss; he or she will want an update if the crisis is large enough. For the little stuff? Use your best judgment.

3. Keep track of your accomplishments

Keeping in mind that your manager’s schedule is jam-packed, he or she wants you to know that it’s impossible to keep track of all of your work “wins.” It’s not because your manager doesn’t care—it’s because even though, say, training the new front office employee really well was the highlight of your month, your hotel manager simply notices that person has been trained and moves on with his or her day.

Your boss is focused on solving problems—not recognizing what’s going well. Nonetheless, he or she absolutely wants to reward you for your good work and ultimately promote the highest performers. So, to facilitate that process, keep a detailed track-log of every win you make. That includes everything from receiving praise from a guest to finding a mistake in a report.

When it comes time to discuss your performance or your salary, bringing out this list of achievements will make your boss’s decisions far easier for him or her.